Cultural Center Ruling Deeply Divisive In Hungary

  • 17 Jul 2012 9:00 AM
Cultural Center Ruling Deeply Divisive In Hungary
In a binding ruling, the Capital Court of Appeals said that project manager Porto Investment and main developer WHB consortium must hand over the CET cultural complex in the Ninth District, which has been sitting idle for two years due to financial disputes between the local government, WHB consortium and Porto Investment.

The ruling came just before summer recess, Nepszabadsag observed. The court ruled that the city rightfully drew on a €4 million bank guarantee and that Porto Investment must hand over the building within 15 days.

Porto Investment said they have never been owners of the property and hence cannot transfer ownership. The main contractors of the CET complex say they will not leave the area until they get paid. Lawyers told website inforadio.hu that this is a complicated matter as only the project manager can transfer the property and not the main contractors.

The sprawling, glass-roofed 27,000m2 building by the Danube near Corvinus University was to have been completed by August, 2010. Huge posters in English and Hungarian were erected near the entrance of the building last  Wednesday with “Budapest's Ghost House” written on them.

Source: Hungary Around the Clock

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